Confessions of a Little Old Lady in Tennis Shoes (Part 1)

After Al Wiseman stopped working on Dennis the Menace, perhaps the closest thing he had to a re-occurring character was a feisty, lantern-jawed little old lady who sometimes wore tennis shoes. During the 70's and 80's, versions of this persona appeared often in Al's work (including books, posters & ads).

I love Wiseman's work as much as any other average Joe on the street does (OK, maybe a little bit more), but somehow the charm of this character is lost on me. I'd say it's the scary-witch-nose in conjunction with the giant-jutting-chin that I find somewhat unnerving. But what do I know?

So what convergence of celestial events transpired to bring about the existence of this ubiquitous gal in the first place? Maybe she was Al's attempt to get as far away as possible from drawing a cute little blonde-haired boy? Or could Al have been smitten by Jan & Dean's 1964 hit song "The Little Old Lady from Pasadena"? Conceivably, Al might have also been inspired by a series of television ads for Southern California Dodge Dealers featuring a little old lady, Kathryn Minner, wearing a pair of Keds tennis shoes. These ads were run from 1964 to 1969 and became so popular that Jan & Dean eventually featured Kathryn on the cover of "The Little Old Lady from Pasadena" album. She also appeared on the TV shows "Gunsmoke", "Batman", "Dragnet", "Get Smart", Family Affair", "The Bob Hope Show" and "The Dating Game". Kathryn Minner passed away in 1969.

Above: Kathryn Minner (She's the one on the left.)

Am I getting closer to the underlying truth in this matter? Or am I missing some other monumental cultural milestone concerning little old ladies in tennis shoes?

I Dunno...


Above: Page 3

Confessions of a Little Old Lady in Tennis Shoes Posts:
Part 1/Part 2/Part 3/Part 4/Part 5/Part 6/Part 7